A unique set of problems arise when a sterilized surgical device or medical instrument also has a removable battery component that needs to periodically removed from the device and recharged. Such battery components do not stay within the sterile field of a singular operation as they are intended to be used for multiple and different surgical procedures on different patients. As such, to reduce the risk of spreading disease and infection, the battery must be sterilized before it can be reused in another surgical procedure. If the battery component is not sterilized prior to being connected to a sterile recharging device, then there is a risk that any contaminants on the battery will spread to the recharging device once the non-sterile battery is connected. If the battery is sterilized prior to being connected to the recharging device, then there is a risk that any contaminants existing on a non-sterile recharging device will spread to the battery. Therefore, it becomes necessary to use more than one sterilization cycle to maintain a sterile environment, which can be costly, time-consuming and harmful to the integrity of the battery.
If the battery is not sterilized at all and is removed from and inserted into the device without contaminating the sterile field by successfully implementing aseptic transfer techniques that are known in the art, there still remains a risk that the recharging device will be exposed to any contaminants on the non-sterile battery, or vice versa, and serve as a source for spreading disease and infection. Accordingly, it would be desirable to be able to sterilize objects including a rechargeable battery while simultaneously charging it so that the sterility of the battery is not compromised by the act of charging the battery and so that the battery can be quickly recharged and sterilized in one stage, thereby returning the battery to use as quickly as possible.
There are existing prior art devices that recharge the battery components inside surgical instruments while maintaining the already pre-existing sterile nature of the surgical instruments during the time that the instrument is being recharged. For example, in U.S. Pat. No. 6,666,875 to Sakurai et al., an apparatus is described that recharges a surgical instrument that has already been sterilized such that the apparatus maintains the pre-existing sterile nature of the instrument while it is being recharged. The Sakurai et al. apparatus includes a surgical instrument, such as an ultrasonic knife, and a recharger. The recharger is plugged into an electrical mains and an alternating current is supplied to an output circuit that is connected to a power transmission circuit that includes a power transmission coil. Electromagnetic energy is radiated outwards from the power transmission coil and into the surroundings. The surgical instrument has an internal rechargeable secondary battery and a power reception unit that includes a power reception coil that is wound about the battery chamber. To recharge the Sakurai et al. instrument, electromagnetic energy is induced in the power reception coil of the power reception unit by the power transmission coil of the recharger. A rectification control unit converts the electromagnetic energy received by the power reception unit into direct current and adjusts the voltage to a level suitable for recharging the secondary battery. Accordingly, electromagnetic energy is radiated outwards from the power transmission coil and into the surroundings and is received by the power reception coil in the secondary battery without requiring any physical contact between the surgical instrument and the recharger. To maintain the sterile nature of the surgical instrument, the recharger has a separate sealed, sterilized container (for example, a vial) formed on the top of the recharger for holding the already sterilized surgical instrument while it is being recharged. This separate container must be transparent to electromagnetic energy so that the electromagnetic energy being radiated outward from the recharger may be transmitted through the container and to the power reception coil in the secondary battery of the instrument. The container must be watertight and capable of being washed and disinfected.
However, because these devices do not function to actively sterilize the instruments and only serve to maintain the pre-existing sterile nature of the instruments, a costly and time-consuming two-stage process is still required to reintroduce the instrument into a sterile, surgical environment. The instrument must be sterilized in one stage and recharged in a separate, second stage while in a sterile environment. In addition, the sealed, sterile container used to hold the instrument while it is being charged must be cleaned and disinfected prior to and after each time that it is used. Furthermore, there is no reliable and fail-safe indication on the container itself as to whether or not it has been cleaned and disinfected prior to being used. As a result, there is still a risk that the sterile nature of the instrument will be compromised. Thus, it would be beneficial to have a sterilizing device that not only sterilizes a removable, rechargeable battery of a surgical instrument but also recharges the battery simultaneously to ensure that the battery is both recharged and sterilized successfully in a single stage and in the same environment.
In the prior art, there does exist one or more devices that simultaneously sterilize and recharge personal articles having battery components in a single stage. For example, in U.S. Pat. No. 6,096,264 to Peifer, a device is described that is used to store, sterilize, and recharge electric toothbrushes. The device is comprised of a cabinet that includes a housing that encloses an internal sterilizing chamber. The internal sterilizing chamber has a microbe-destroying agent inside, such as a sterilizing lamp that emits ultraviolet (UV) radiation. A holder is mounted inside the chamber and is comprised of a plurality of receptacles that receive and support the toothbrushes. Each receptacle has associated recharging elements for recharging the toothbrush that is associated with the receptacle. The recharging elements include pairs of exposed contacts and covered induction coils. A plug and a power cord extend outside of the housing for connection to a domestic receptacle. Power from the cord is connected to an AC/DC converter, which, in turn, is connected to the contacts and coils of the receptacles. Accordingly, the battery components of the toothbrushes are inductively charged using the induction coils on the exposed contacts of the receptacles and simultaneously, the toothbrushes are sterilized.
However, this device, as well as others, requires that the sterile chamber or housing be breached so that a power cord can be drawn into the chamber or housing so that power can be provided to the electrical contacts on the recharging elements. Therefore, only a certain degree of sterility can be created or maintained by these devices, which, while it may be suitable for personal articles such as toothbrushes, it is not sufficient in view of operating room standards (as legally mandated by regulatory agencies) and for valid sterilization of surgical instruments, referred to herein as “surgical sterilization.” Also, and similarly to the device described in Sakurai et al. and other devices like it, this device sterilizes the toothbrush or the instrument itself and not the battery inside the toothbrush or instrument. Therefore, a non-sterile component is still present in the device even after the sterilization procedure has been completed. Accordingly, it would be desirable to have a device that simultaneously sterilizes and recharges a battery, whereby a power cord or other method of drawing power into the sterilization chamber does not breach the surgical sterilization chamber and therefore, is capable of sterilizing surgical instruments and the like, and directly recharges the battery.
In addition, the receptacles described in the Peifer device for receiving and supporting the toothbrushes so that the toothbrushes can be recharged necessarily cover a portion of the toothbrushes and shield the covered portion and the electrical contacts from the UV radiation that sterilizes the toothbrush. Therefore, a portion of the toothbrush and the recharging elements of the device are not adequately exposed to the UV radiation and, therefore, are not sufficiently sterilized. Accordingly, it would be desirable to have a device that simultaneously sterilizes and recharges a battery that does not require obscuring a portion of the battery, the surgical instrument, or the recharging elements of the device from the sterilizing components or agents.
It would also be advantageous to be able to adapt or retrofit existing (and, most likely, expensive) surgical sterilizing systems with the capability of simultaneously recharging a battery to be sterilized thereby allowing a surgeon or other operating room personnel to continue to use any conventional or standard sterilization system rather than requiring replacement of the conventional or standard systems. As a result, the large expense and training time that would be required to overhaul the existing sterilization systems would be avoided entirely. None of the devices described in the prior art, however, disclose such an ability to recharge a sterilizable battery in an existing sterilization system.
Thus, a need exists to overcome the problems with the prior art as discussed above.